1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an elevator system, and particularly to a smart elevator system using wireless sensor networks to acquire data relating to operating an elevator system.
2. Description of the Related Art
The elevator is a type of transport equipment that moves people or goods between floors (levels) of a structure, such as a building, a vessel, or other structures. Elevators are generally powered by electric motors that drive traction cables. Elevators are typically used in office buildings, airports, shopping malls, and other large structures. These devices transport large numbers of persons and equipment between two or more locations in a structure.
Elevators can be used a variety of ways and are widely used throughout the world. Elevators can operate in a variety of forms such as freight elevators, stage lifts, dumbwaiter elevators, and vehicle elevators. Although elevators have been advanced to perform a variety of tasks, a primary use is in transporting passengers throughout a structure, such as a building. A person or passenger awaiting an elevator car may spend numerous minutes waiting on an elevator car for transport. A passenger may also spend numerous minutes waiting inside the elevator car while passengers depart and load.
Current elevators can use technology to make passenger transport faster, easier, and even more energy efficient. These smart elevators can have various technological advancements over its predecessors and are continuing to evolve. For example, some smart elevators can calculate the weight of passengers to prevent too many people from getting on. Other smart elevators are able to route passengers to their requested location based on the number of passengers with a similar request. These smart elevators typically use a standard hardwire connection in transmitting and processing passenger requests.
Wireless Sensor-Actor Networks (WSANs) have attracted much interest in recent years. A typical WSAN consists of a larger set of miniaturized sensor nodes reporting their data to significantly fewer actor (actuator) nodes. Sensors probe their surroundings and report their findings to one or multiple actors, which processes the collected sensor reports and respond to emerging events of interest. The use of WSANs in assisting in the transport of people is expected to make elevators more efficient and decrease elevator traffic delay. Manufacturers and business owners believe the market for smart elevators is expected to grow as elevator manufacturers look for ways to move people around faster and more efficiently.
Elevators incorporating wireless sensor networks in the use for transporting people are known. Elevators of this type include, for example, published PCT patent application WO 2007020907 A1, which teaches a system which calls elevator cars using a wireless network of nodes. A mobile node at an unknown location broadcasts a request packet. The request packet includes an identification of the mobile node and an elevator call command. One or more fixed nodes at known locations measure signal strength of the received request packet and determine a known location of the mobile node based on the signal strength and the known locations of the fixed nodes, and call an elevator car according to the known location of the mobile node and the elevator call command.
Also, for example, the published PCT patent application WO 2011009356 A1, is directed towards a wireless system for detecting identification cards of mobile users within a building. In this system, an elevator automatically responds to detection of a target card in the vicinity of an elevator sensor.
There appears to be a need for an elevator system to incorporate the use of wireless sensor networks in operating elevators by allowing the sensor nodes to receive the approximate location of people and the approximate number of persons in various locations and to provide a method of using that information to determine efficient means to transport persons. Thus, a smart elevator system addressing the aforementioned problems is desired.